Butler Manufacturing Company

Pacific Technology, Inc.

William W Korff

Donald R Hall

Edward J Carpenter

Lawrence J Barello

Orlien N Becker

Alan E Zoerb, Deceased

Certain calendar events, such as the standard/daylight time transition or a holiday such as Labor Day, always occur on the same alphabetic day always having the same relationship to the beginning or end of the same month in any year; however, their numeric day varies from year to year. In order to update the numeric day of such a calendar event that is used by a microprocessor of a programmable electronic real-time load controller, the microprocessor selects a reference day value representing the numeric day of the calendar event in a given year and selects a reference year value representing the numeric year of that year. At the beginning of each real-time year, the microprocessor determines a real-time year value representing the numeric year of the real-time year, determines a current numeric day value for the calendar event from the reference day value, the reference year value, and the real-time year value, and stores the current numeric day value for use during the current real-time year.

Programmable electronic real-time load controller, and apparatus

A programmable electronic real-time load controller includes: a plurality of load control circuits, each being adapted to be interconnected with a load; a hardware clock; and, a data processor, operating under control of a set of program instructions stored in a program memory thereof, for implementing real-time control by comparing real-time information from the hardware clock with a time schedule stored in an event memory, and accordingly establishing an on state or an off state for each load, the on state representing a desired load-on state for the associated load control circuit and the off state representing a desired load-off state for the associated load control circuit. In order that the controller may also implement demand limit control, the controller is provided with additional components including a sensor for measuring the actual rate of power consumption by the loads, a set point selector for selecting a set point representing a desired rate of power consumption, and an additional program memory storing a set of program instructions for demand limit control. The data processor is responsive to this set of program instructions to: obtain the actual power rate and the set point from the sensor and the set point selector, respectively; compare the actual power rate with the set point; and, for those loads in an on state under real-time control, vary the number of loads actually energized and de-energized so as to maintain the actual rate substantially equal to the set point. The additional components for demand limit control are preferably mounted on a printed circuit card adapted to be inserted into a housing of the controller and interconnected with the data processor therein.

Programmable electronic real-time load controller providing demand limit

A programmable electronic real-time load controller includes: a plurality of load control circuits, each being adapted to be interconnected with a load; a hardware clock; and, a programmed data processor for responding to real-time information from the hardware clock to effect control of the status of each load control circuit in accordance with a predetermined time schedule that has been entered into the data processor. The data processor includes: a CPU; a program memory; an event memory; and a plurality of ports which permit a plurality of devices, including a keyboard, a plurality of displays, and the hardware clock, to interchange information with the data processor. The event memory includes a plurality of event memory locations for storing one or more control events and corresponding event times for each load. The CPU is operative: to enter control events and corresponding event times, upon actuation of the keyboard, into the event memory; to obtain real-time information from the hardware clock; to address and search the event memory locations to effect comparison, for each load, of the event times therein with the real-time information; and, to control the status of each load control circuit in accordance with that one of the control events whose corresponding event time occurs at or immediately preceding the time represented by the real-time information.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

William W Korff